Bayer exec exiting to lead new Sanofi unit in NJ

Dieter Weinand will be based in Bridgewater and oversee the new Primary Care GBU for Sanofi SA. - (COMMONSV/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)

The head of Bayer’s pharmaceuticals division is leaving the company and coming to New Jersey to head up a new global business unit for Sanofi SA, the French multinational pharmaceutical concern.

Dieter Weinand will be based in Bridgewater and oversee the new Primary Care GBU that combines the product portfolios of Sanofi's existing Diabetes and Cardiovascular GBU with Established Products, currently part of its General Medicines & Emerging Markets GBU. The new unit will focus exclusively on mature markets, Sanofi said Thursday.

Weinand will report to Sanofi CEO Olivier Brandicourt and become a member of the company’s executive committee.

The Primary Care GBU is one of two being created by Sanofi; the other, China & Emerging Markets, is expected to launch concurrently with Weinand’s unit at the beginning of 2019, the company said.

"Dieter is a seasoned professional with significant experience in the pharmaceutical sector, having successfully launched and marketed some of the most innovative medicines in the last few years. He has a proven track record in change management and helping challenge businesses reach their full potential," Brandicourt said in a prepared statement.

A U.S. citizen, Weinand has 30 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical industry. He has held senior posts at major pharmaceutical companies including Warner-Lambert, Pfizer and Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Before joining Bayer in 2014 as head of the pharmaceuticals division, he was president, global commercialization & portfolio management, at Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization Inc. in Princeton.